Stingray: You Can't Hide Forever: Stingray, #1

By Gary Zeiger

A decade worth of research and development went into the creation of a new prototype warship. New propulsion system twice an order of magnitude faster than current hyperdrives. New weapons, capable of leveling a planet. New shielding, able to withstand barrage after barrage. Her name: Stingray. And she was gone, in a blink of an eye.

 

Five years prior, the governments of planet after planet voted in favor of being governed by a dozen of the universe's most powerful corporations. The self-governing Planetary Alliance silently fell, replaced by The Conglomerate. They wanted change. One planet stood alone: Earth had seen her fair share of change and wanted no part of it.

 

Capt. Reginald Epsilon saw the writing on the wall. Refusing to recognize his new commanders and facing court martial and prison, he disappeared without a trace. When Stingray went missing, an all-out manhunt for Epsilon was on. Stopping at nothing, Admiral Roth ruthlessly used Epsilon's XO and protégé, the stunning Lt. Jessie Smythe, and her little sister Maggie as pawns. Can he save Maggie and prevent the most powerful warship in the universe from falling into corrupt hands, hands hell bent on destroying Earth?

• Language: English
• Publisher: TholianWeb Productions, Inc.
• Release date: Jun 15, 2020
• ISBN: 9781935852100

Gary Zeiger

GARY ZEIGER grew up in Delmar, NY and was hooked on science fiction after watching Star Trek (the original series) at the age of 6. As a youngster and not realizing Star Trek had just started syndication, he took up a letter writing campaign to the network, studio, local TV station, and anyone who would listen, pleading with them not to cancel Star Trek! His love for classic sci-fi inspired him to pursue technology as a career, graduating with a BS degree in computer science from Rochester Institute of Technology. Gary has been in the technology field for over 20 years and still loves the classic sci-fi story. He resides in Jacksonville, FL with his wife Tonya and dogs Napoleon and Apache. Sadly, the tank full of unnamed fish have gone to the great fishbowl in the sky.

Book preview

STINGRAY

YOU CAN’T HIDE FOREVER

By

Gary Zeiger

TholianWeb Productions

Jacksonville, FL

First Edition Text Copyright ©2011 by Gary Zeiger

Second Edition Text Copyright ©2020 by Gary Zeiger

GaryZeiger.com

First Edition Illustrations and Cover Design by Charles Sutton

Copyright ©2011 by TholianWeb Productions, Inc.

Second Edition Cover Design by Manuel Silva

Copyright ©2020 by TholianWeb Productions, Inc.

All rights reserved.

Published by TholianWeb Productions, Inc.

TholianWebPublishing.com

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, or stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews. For information regarding permissions, write to [e-mail] or TholianWeb Productions, Inc., Attn: Permissions Dept., 13720-8 Old St. Augustine Rd., #180, Jacksonville, FL 32258

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Available

Library of Congress Control Number: 2011941691

ISBN 978-1-935852-09-4 (print edition)

ISBN 978-1-935852-10-0 (eBook edition)

First Edition: November 2011

Second Edition: June 2020

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Special Thanks To:

My Wife, Tonya

for putting up with all my cockamamie ideas over the years!

Dave Seay, LCDR, USN Retired

for keeping my naval and nautical terms ship-shape.

CHAPTER ONE

Captain Reginald Franklin Epsilon was the former captain of the AWS Freedom. The Freedom was the flagship of the Alliance Of Arms (AOA) which had been the military branch of the Planetary Alliance. The Planetary Alliance was a union of planets throughout the known universe who had aligned together for common trade and protection. Eps, as his friends called him, was trudging through the snow, carrying a stack of cut firewood on his back. He was ruggedly handsome, average height, muscular build, and looked to be in his late thirties to early forties. His eyes were dark and piercing, and his brown hair was somewhat spiky. Today he was sporting a full beard, which was something he hadn’t done in a very long time. He came from a line of military and pirate men, all with mysterious lives.

At his side was his trusty friend Timber, half Alaskan Malamute and half Siberian Husky. Eps never found a better breed of dog, even through his extensive travels as an Alliance star cruiser captain. He got Timber as a puppy three years ago from Taliriktug, one of only two real friends he could completely trust. Tal came from a long line of Inuit dog breeders and was first generation Inuit to move off planet and continue to breed this fine dog. The Conglomerate blockade of Earth put a strain on his ability to breed the Malamute/Husky combo, though he still maintained connections that were willing to supply stock, for a premium fee of course. When asked how he got his name, he joked that his mother had a fiery sense of humor. In Inuit, Taliriktug meant strong arm. She complained that he was constantly punching her while he was inside her womb and would say that the boy was trying to get out. The irony was that when he was born, he literally popped right out, but with only one arm!

Epsilon was returning to the cabin he built from the surrounding trees. The wood was much harder than trees on other planets (it had to be to survive in this constant cold) and, as a result, it afforded better insulation from the weather. Once it started to burn, it would burn hotter and longer than other woods. Eps made a point of not using technology, afraid its use could tip off the Conglomerate Military Command (CMC) to his position. However, for cutting and chopping this wood, the only tool that would cut this stuff was a laser hand saw. He and Timber were the only life forms on this planet. The indigenous life died out many decades ago due to this system’s sun decaying. The planet was on the edge of the Frontier and so far removed from civilization that it didn’t have a name, nor was it on any star map. It was a perfect place to hide.

The governments of the Planetary Alliance were duped (as Eps would put it) into believing that a group of corporations (calling itself The Conglomerate) could run their respective governments better and cheaper. The people would benefit in the long run with more services, less waste, and no wars. Leading this charge for change was President Amabo Karab, a sweet talking used shuttle craft salesman. So, one-by-one, each planet voted to join the Conglomerate and dissolve their government in favor of corporate rule. The Conglomerate also acquired each of the fallen government’s resources, including their military. As each planet fell victim, the Conglomerate amassed a vast military armada, which came under the purview of the CMC.

One planet refused to give in. The people of this planet had already experienced the promised change by politician after politician. Earth knew what was in store and stood alone against the Conglomerate. She recalled all of her ambassadors and citizens living abroad along with her extensive military forces and entered into a period of semi-isolationism. Earth still traded with other planets, though it was mostly resistance freedom fighters that ran the Conglomerate blockade set up around Earth. Even with all the military might combined from the old Planetary Alliance, Earth’s forces could easily defeat them. The Conglomerate’s attempt to starve the people of Earth was feeble at best. She’s a survivor.

* * *

Today was an unusually cold and dim day. Wisps of an asteroid belt could be seen in the sky moving between the planet and what feeble sun this system still had. According to his scans when he first arrived, the sun was burning out. He estimated another couple of years before he and Timber would have to find a new residence. I think a warmer planet next time.

Epsilon dumped his chopped wood on the front porch by the door and opened it. He watched as Timber immediately ran in and curled up by the fire.

Wuss, he said to the dog who sighed and closed his eyes, as Epsilon shut the door. He looked out the window and saw that it was snowing—again. Well, fella, looks like we’re in for another snowstorm. Timber grunted as he rolled over to warm his belly, ignoring his friend. Eps just shook his head.

Looking around his one-room cabin, it was modestly furnished. Most everything had been scavenged from different space vessels that met their demise and were left drifting lifelessly in space. In the far corner was the fireplace which was fashioned out of a boiler from a cruise liner, her long gone guests no longer required hot water. A bunk taken from a frigate sat next to it. A window over the bunk looked out at an expanse of nothing but snow and more snow. The back wall had no windows since it backed up to a solid wall of ice that was several kilometers thick. There was a collection of tools and weapons hanging on it. One of his favorites was an old, very rare Smith & Wesson Model 29 .44 Magnum revolver. He’d acquired it, along with several cans of ammunition, at a jockey lot on Gamma Carlos Prime for a song. Actually, he handled some thugs that were shaking down the vendors in the lot. As a token, one of the grateful vendors gave it to him.

At the other end of the cabin was the kitchen. Honestly, it was nothing more than a place to store and prepare food, as the cooking was done in the fireplace over the open fire. When they arrived on the planet, Eps brought enough protein to last them for two years. In the forest, he found local roots and fruits, which he surmised nature had intended for her long-deceased inhabitants. Using these, he was able to extend their food supply an additional year. In the coming months he will be forced to go off planet to resupply his food stock, a risky trip that he is not looking forward to. There were two windows here that looked out onto rows and rows of trees. The trees were very tall, standing some thirty to fifty meters. Their trunks were some ten meters in girth and bare until the top, which blossomed into thousands and thousands of thin green spikes. The bark was rough with a reddish-brown color to it.

The front wall had the only door to the cabin as well as three windows that looked out across another vast expanse of snow. The only vegetation that could be seen was the forest to the left. Under the front windows was a real couch, taken from some wealthy aristocrat’s doomed vessel. Finally, in the middle of the room was a table with two chairs, also taken from that same lavish vessel, with both place settings set; like a dinner guest was expected at any moment.

Taking another glance around the room, you couldn’t help but notice that the windows were a Hodge-Podge, taken from different types of vessels. Looking again at the back wall, the eye was drawn to a box mounted high up on the wall near the kitchen. The nondescript metallic box had one red protruding lamp centered on the top. The front face near the top contained a round screen, the middle face held what appeared to be a small, round speaker and the bottom face had a couple of switches and a round glass piece. It looked like something out of a 1960s era nuclear missile launch facility on Earth.

Capt. Epsilon never visited Earth. He was captivated by all of the wonderful stories and tales that had been passed from one ship to another over the years: About the first ships that sailed the seas and were attacked by monsters from the deep; the birth of the United States of America and then on to her Industrial Revolution; the romance of pre-Castro Cuba; the rise and fall of Communism in Russia; the first space flight of the Apollo missions (HE didn’t count popping up into orbit then coming back down as space flight); the building of the first planetary space station orbiting Earth and then on to the first space port built on the moon; and finally, the first interstellar space flight by astronaut Capt. Reginald Franklin Epsilon (Eps’s Great-something Grandfather) and cosmonaut Ivan Koblista. Their accomplishment was achieved by using an early form of the modern-day hyper-drive. During that historic flight, the space travelers made another unprecedented discovery: contact with an alien species. This set into rapid motion Earth’s launch into space politics. This would set the standards for inter-species relations and government, culminating in the formation of the Planetary Alliance. There was much speculation among the conspiracy theorists of the time of how Earth obtained hyper-drive technology in the first place and who the senior Capt. Epsilon really was. Decades later, it was revealed that there was indeed a cover up as the senior Capt. Epsilon was not actually born on Earth. There was no mention, however, of where he was from and shortly after returning to Earth, he mysteriously vanished. It was widely speculated that he was gallivanting around the universe with the aliens he introduced to Earth during his first contact. Unfortunately, the species, known as the Corrallans, was now extinct due to a virus outbreak. Cosmonaut Koblista never expounded publicly on what he put into his official report. That report remains highly classified even until today while Koblista took whatever secrets he had to his grave.

The romance of Earth had truly captivated Eps. He thoroughly studied her people and what they did right (and what they did wrong) throughout the centuries. He put this research to use during his life to stay one step ahead of every situation; that and his unique lineage, which is something he has gone to great lengths to keep secret.

* * *

As Epsilon prepared dinner, Timber’s ears perked up, and he started to howl. He got up and nervously circled the cabin a couple of times, whining and growling. Looking straight up, he let out a deep, loud howl. As if on cue, the red light atop the little metal box started blinking. The little screen came to life, showing a lone dot halfway from the edge and moving toward the center.

WARNING! blared a female voice out of the little speaker on the front of the box. Incoming unidentified vessel. Time to orbit: one minute.

Well, Timber, both of you need your early warning detection systems overhauled, Epsilon exclaimed, as he hit the silence button on the box. The red light continued to flash, and the screen showed the approach of the vessel.

WARNING! blared the box again a short time later. Unidentified vessel entering atmosphere. Time to intercept: one minute. At that, Timber started howling again, this time looking straight at the door.

Great, Epsilon said. Probably some moron trying to sell entertainment subscriptions. Timber emitted a low growl and laid down in front of the door. Epsilon grabbed his .44 Magnum, strapped it to his waist and looked out the window as a small transport ship hovered about three meters above the snow and about a half klick (kilometer) away.

A door on the side of the ship opened and out dropped what looked like a person into the snow. As fast as it arrived, it was gone. Ooo, that’s gonna leave a mark, Epsilon said to Timber. He watched the being stagger up, try to walk toward the cabin, and fall down again. Something looked familiar about that being, but Epsilon just couldn’t put his finger on it. Hmm, he muttered. That ship is pretty small to be this far out with no support vessel, he said, to no one in particular, while looking at the lone dot retreating on the scope. He grabbed the door handle with one hand and the scruff of Timber’s neck with the other. While opening the door, he said, Go bring ‘em back, boy, and released the hound.

With a hearty WOOF, Timber was off after the intruder, his mighty legs gobbled up the distance with ease and speed, reaching the intruder in no time. Grabbing the shirt collar with his mouth, he started dragging the being back toward the cabin. About halfway to the cabin, the being, a human female, finally stood up and started walking. Ah, I wondered when she would show up.

* * *

The wet and cold woman came through the cabin door, wearing only a ragged Conglomerate uniform shirt, pants, and no shoes. Epsilon ushered her immediately into the cabin and in front of the fire.

Teeth chattering, she emitted a meek, Hi Eps. Sorry I haven’t come by sooner. The woman was none other than Lt. Jessie Smythe, former XO (Executive, or First, Officer) of the AWS Freedom, previously under his command. Epsilon was always fond of Jess and took her under his wing as his protégé.

I was beginning to think you had forgotten about me, Jess, Epsilon responded, as Timber sniffed the newcomer up and down. Satisfied, he jumped up on the bed, curled up in a ball, and nodded off.

You’re a hard guy to find, she chattered, as Epsilon took a hand-held scanner out of a box on the floor and set it on the mantel over the fireplace.

Well, what can I say? There are some who would have my head for no good reason.

Never thought I’d see you sporting a full beard.

Well, in case you hadn’t noticed, it’s a wee bit chilly outside. Helps keep from getting frostbite.

Expecting someone? she asked, nodding toward the table.

Ah yes, I was hoping you’d drop by for dinner some time! Epsilon pulled some clothes and a towel out